The invention relates to a cord lock placed in a headrail for venetian type blinds or pleated shades in which lift cords pass through a cord lock at one end of the headrail.
Venetian type blinds, pleated shades, roman shades and roll-up blinds have lift cords for raising and lowering the window covering material. The lift cords extend from a bottomrail through or past the window covering material and into the headrail. The cords can be collected on a cord collector within the headrail or, more typically, exit one end of the headrail. In most of these blinds a cord lock is provided at one end of the headrail and the lift cords pass through that cord lock as they exit the headrail. The cord lock allows the user to maintain the blind in any desired position from fully raised to fully lowered.
Most headrails for window coverings operated by lift cords are U-shaped channels. An opening is cut in the bottom or front of the channel through which the lift cords exit the headrail. Usually, the cord lock is attached to the headrail so that the cord lock is within or extends over the opening. The cord lock may be held in place by clips or tabs that attach to the opening. An example of such a cord lock is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,947,921 to Chun-cheng. Other cord locks extend the full height of the handrail and snap under the rolled top edges of the headrail. McClure discloses such a cord lock in U.S. Pat. No. 4,488,588. Still other cord locks have flanges that are fastened to the headrail by screws or rivets. The cord lock disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,091,033 to Dodge is attached to the headrail in this manner. Yet, another type of cord lock is fastened to a cradle or bracket plate within the headrail. Bums discloses this type of cord locking mechanism in U.S. Pat. No. 2,223,403. All of these cord locks have a significant disadvantage in that once in place they are relatively difficult to remove.
Nearly all blinds and pleated shades are fabricated in a factory and taken in finished form to the house or building where they will be hung by an installer. The installer mounts the brackets that hold the blind at each window location and may adjust the length of the blind at the time of installation. The salesman should ask the buyer if he or she has a preference as to whether the lift cords and tilt cords should be on the right side or the left side of the blind. If there is a preference, the factory ought to be notified so that the blind is fabricated according to the customer""s preference. Should the installer deliver a conventional blind with the controls on the wrong side, he cannot change the location of the blind controls in the field and must return that blind to the factory. Although some installers have the skills and the tools to fabricate blinds in their shop they seldom reconfigure blinds in their shop to change the position of the controls because that is a time consuming process. It is easier and less costly for the installer to simply return the blind to the factory. Each return means that the installer must make a second trip to the home or business thereby increasing the cost of the sale to both the manufacturer and the installer. Furthermore, if an installer is required to return to a home to replace a blind, very often the customer will ask the installer to make other changes or adjustments. Then the installer must spend even more time on that sale. Consequently, there is a need for a headrail for venetian blinds and pleated shades in which the installer can change the position of the cord lock from one end of the headrail to the opposite end of the headrail in the field where the window covering is being installed.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,894 Judkins discloses a headrail having reversible modular controls allowing the cord lock to be positioned at either end of the headrail. The headrail has two sidewalls that are spaced apart, generally parallel and attached to the base. Each sidewall has a slot sized to receive a plug or a fitting through which the lift cords and tilt cords or a hook for a tilt wand pass. The slots are opposite one another and of a same size. One changes the controls from one end of the headrail to the opposite end of the headrail by moving the lift cords and tilt cord or hook from one slot to the other slot. This requires that slots be cut in the sidewalls and a plug be provided for one of the slots.
Consequently, there is a need for a headrail in which the installer can change the position of the cord lock from one end of the headrail to an opposite end at the time the headrail is installed. That need can best be fulfilled if there is a cord lock that can easily be removed from and replaced into the headrail.
I provide a cord lock and headrail for venetian type blinds and pleated shades in which the cord lock can be easily switched from the right side of the blind to the left side of the blind or vice versa. The headrail has an elongated body having a base, a first sidewall and a second sidewall. I provide an insert or endcap that fits into the end of the headrail and is carried by a slot or rib on each of the sidewalls. A pair of pockets are provided on the insert, the pockets being positioned so that one pocket is adjacent each sidewall when the insert is attached to the end of a headrail. The pockets are generally rectangular and have a front wall and a rear wall that are generally parallel. A tab extends from the top edge of the front wall The cord lock has a rectangular housing and fits within the pocket. A flange extends from the front side of the cord lock housing and rests on the top edge of the front wall of the pocket. A second flange extends from the rear wall of the cord lock housing and rests on the top edge of the rear wall of the pocket. There is no slot in the second flange that is similar in size and location to the slot in the first flange. The cord lock can be dropped into the pocket. But, it will only fit properly when the first flange rests on the top edge of the front wall of the pocket and the tab is within the slot. This cord lock can be easily lifted from the pocket without using any tools.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a description of the present preferred embodiments shown in the drawings.